RULE 54. The Umpire shall not be changed during the progress of a game, except for reason of illness or injury.
HIS POWERS AND JURISDICTION.
RULE 55. SECTION 1. The Umpire is master of the Field from the commencement to the termination of the game, and is entitled to the respect of the spectators, and any person offering any insult or indignity to him must be promptly ejected from the grounds.
SECTION. 2. He must be invariably addressed by the players as Mr. Umpire; and he must compel the players to observe the provisions of all the Playing Rules, and he is hereby invested with authority to order any player to do or omit to do any act as he may deem necessary, to give force and effect to any and all such provisions.
SPECIAL DUTIES.
RULE 56. The Umpire's duties shall be as follows:
SECTION 1. The Umpire is the sole and absolute judge of play. In no instance shall any person, except the Captain of the competing teams, be allowed to address him or question his decisions, and they can only question him on an interpretation of the Rules. No Manager or any other officer of either club shall be permitted to go on the field or address the Umpire, under a penalty of a forfeiture of a game.
SECTION. 2. Before the commencement of a Game, the Umpire shall see that the rules governing all the materials of the Game are strictly observed. He shall ask the Captain of the Home Club whether there are any special ground rules to be enforced, and if there are, he shall see that they are duly enforced, provided they do not conflict with any of these rules.
SECTION. 3. The Umpire must keep the contesting nines playing constantly from the commencement of the game to its termination, allowing such delays only as are rendered unavoidable by accident, injury or rain. He must, until the completion of the game, require the players of each side to promptly take their positions in the field as soon as the third man is put out, and must require the first striker of the opposite side to be in his position at the bat as soon as the fielders are in their places.
SECTION. 4. The Umpire shall count and call every "Unfair Ball" delivered by the Pitcher, and every "Dead Ball," if also an unfair ball, as a "Ball," and he shall count and call every "Strike." Neither a "Ball" nor a "Strike" shall be counted or called until the ball has passed the Home Base. He shall also declare every "Dead Ball," "Block," "Foul Hit," "Foul Strike," and "Balk," "Infield" or "Outfield Hit," as prescribed in Rule 45, Section 9.